7mm-08 Bullet Choice for Stone Sheep inside of 500 yards

[Nipper]

I'll check my inventory. I'm not sure how many I have but I may have a box or two to spare. Like most people... I don't shoot them much for practice since they are hard to find.

Hey. Roughrice. If you have 2 boxes, and your willing to sell them to me please, let me know, I have some other 120's for practice also but would love to be able to get these from you, 610 207 9930. If you feel like calling me back today.. thankyou

 

[Marky_mark]

What do you think the ballistic tip is going to do to a sheep launched at 2800fps that's so horrible?

Ive had terrible terminal performance with ballistic tips and would never consider them on any hunt for any animal of value. If you want to risk using them on a stone sheep hunt. Feel free.

 

[hicountry1]

150bt

 

[Texis]

No love for Berger VLD Hunters? I've gotten excellent results (DRT) on whitetail. StaBall pushes the 140 to 2950 with no pressure signs at all. I like the idea of monos, or partitions.. but the VLDs just go so far (staying above 2000 fps) and the rifle loves them, 1/2 MOA. Sheep may be tougher than whitetail
Let the Berger bashing begin

 

[Nipper]

Hey. Roughrice. If you have 2 boxes, and your willing to sell them to me please, let me know, I have some other 120's for practice also but would love to be able to get these from you, 610 207 9930. If you feel like calling me back today.. thankyou

610 207 9830

 

[Nipper]

610 207 9830

My first phone number was wrong. Fat fingers

 

[Marky_mark]

@JuddL & @Marky_mark ,

I have never recovered a Ballistic Tip from any of the rifles I've taken deer with.
250Savage, 257 Roberts, 257 Roberts AI, 7mm-08, 7mm-08AI, 280 Rem, 284 Win, 7mm Rem Mag, 30-30, 30-06.
Distances from 20 feet to 413 yards.

The only bullets I've recovered from deer are the jacket from the Berger VLD, and whole bullet on two shot with Hornady SST.

Side note...
The 100gr Ballistic Tip from a 257 Roberts is NOT fur friendly on coyotes!
Accidentally grabbed them instead of the 90gr Sierra BlitzKings I had loaded up in the dark.
Hit mom front on at 200 yards.
Went through base of her neck & proceeded to split a channel along the spine till it punched through the hips & exited.

1 "pup" (they were almost old enough to leave their mother) hit through both front shoulders at 210 yards.
2nd "pup" through both front shoulders at 396 yards.

I would never own a rifle in any of those calibers you listed. I think they are all inferior
How many stone sheep have you hunted?
Or any sheep?
What's the most you've spent on a hunt?

 

[speedbump]

One to consider not originally mentioned is a 150 grain Swift Scirocco. They have (in .30 & .264) penetrated, expanded, and held together in every animal I've taken with them - from warthogs to wildebeest...and many in between. Just as handy: as a bonded cup and core bullet they are extremely easy to work up loads for, & have stellar BCs.

.02

 

[Battering Ram]

It's been said a bunch already in this thread. Read a few of my responses with the 7-08 and Barnes in other posts. I've been loading Barnes for a long time now (20 years or better) and I can tell you the 120's will flat work. I wouldn't be hesitate to step up to the 145 LRX either. My wife's 7-08 is a savage, 22 inch barrel, and I have the Barnes145s running average of 2900 fps. That is a deadly combination. You are giving up weight but you will have penetration and that penetration will be 120 grains on impact, 120 grains in the vitals, and 100 grains moving out the other side. If you can get it to shoot faster than the heavier bullets mentioned you will have less time for the bullet to be affected by wind and gravity. Under 500 yards, that won't be a big concern anyway. In the end, if you have a 10 inch kill zone and you hit one inch either direction of your mark, you stilled killed the sheep quickly too. Keep us posted on your hunt and what combination you decided on please. Good luck to you.

 

[birddog 68]

Thanks for all the feedback, Gentlemen. After all of this, when I took my 7mm-08 to the range with a variety of loads, it didn't love any of these. The best the 7mm-08 did does not compete with what my old faithful Browning .270 A-Bolt does with 140 gr Ballistic Tips over a mild 51 gr load of RL 19. MV is 2700 which carries me to 500 @ 1797 fps (3 fps short of 1800 expansion) at sea level. Just got back from the range confirming my drops for the .270 (.5 mil @ 200 yds, 1.3 mil @ 300 yds), and have plugged into my Leica Ballistic app and fed over to the 2800.com rangefinder. At this point all the fiddling and tinkering and second guessing my shooting setup is done. Now I just hope to be worthy of this hunt and my guide's efforts, and give all I have mentally and physically. I'll be sure to loop back when I return and let you all know how it went. All the best,
GA

View attachment 480052

The OP decided to take the time tested 270 Winchester.

 

[tr175]

Of the 5 listed, my vote is for the Barnes TTSX 120gr. Better penetration for off angle shots.

I would go with something you don't have listed, Barnes 139 LRX. Best functioning bullet they make.

 

[emp1953]

Accubonds are a tougher, bonded bullet. Ive killed many things with them, but I don't think they are preferred for deer, antelope, or sheep over the ballistic tip, especially once you get out past 300 yards. In my experience with those species, the BT gives "dead right there" performance whereas the accubond often pencil holes in those species if you don't hit bone. If we were talking about elk inside of 400 yards, or hogs at close range, yeah accubond.

Nosler has two flavors of Accubond, the plain old Accubond (AB) and the Accubond Long Range (ABLR) I've found them to perform differently out of my .270win. I prefer and plain (AB). I've had the ABLR "pencil Hole at longer ranges but not the AB. A whitetail I shot at 600yds had a nice exit hole and a completely obliterated heart and lungs. Where I hunt I can have a 40yd shot or a 600yd shot. In the .270 I found the 150gr best for both ranges. When using a 130gr at ranges under 100yd the entire front end of the deer was useless. 150's dont destroy so much but deliver all that's needed. If you are hooked on bonded bullets, try to get some Swift Scirroccos. They perform flawlessly in my .270 they are just too hard to find anymore.

 

[chav0_12]

Couldn't agree more with what you said about 120BT bullets, there's only one problem here, WHERE ARE THEY! I haven't seen or heard of any for sale anywhere, if anyone knows where I can find them. Please.
I know that I'm not the only one who is looking for these. But. In the years that I've been searching for these, just seems to be unobtainable!

No kidding. I'm loading for my son-in-laws 7mm-08 with a short barrel. It's his old youth model rifle, it'd probably be great for his wife. I shot some 140gr Barnes out of it and didn't get much over 2500 fps. I figured a 120gr would've worked great, I was looking for the BTs but they're nowhere to be found. I ended up getting some 120gr HHs.

 

[JuddL]

@JuddL & @Marky_mark ,

I have never recovered a Ballistic Tip from any of the rifles I've taken deer with.
250Savage, 257 Roberts, 257 Roberts AI, 7mm-08, 7mm-08AI, 280 Rem, 284 Win, 7mm Rem Mag, 30-30, 30-06.
Distances from 20 feet to 413 yards.

The only bullets I've recovered from deer are the jacket from the Berger VLD, and whole bullet on two shot with Hornady SST.

Side note...
The 100gr Ballistic Tip from a 257 Roberts is NOT fur friendly on coyotes!
Accidentally grabbed them instead of the 90gr Sierra BlitzKings I had loaded up in the dark.
Hit mom front on at 200 yards.
Went through base of her neck & proceeded to split a channel along the spine till it punched through the hips & exited.

1 "pup" (they were almost old enough to leave their mother) hit through both front shoulders at 210 yards.
2nd "pup" through both front shoulders at 396 yards.

You're making a big assumption and that all BT's are created equal. I can tell you for fact that the 120 and 150 BT are tougher bullets than the 140. I shot 2 bucks and a doe and none exited, it did make a nice silver dollar exit on a yote. These are central west TX deer not like you have.

The current (neon green) box 140's don't exit on deer and I assume bigger sized animals. Now, they do however make soup of the internals

None of this matters any longer cuz he's taking the two seventy.